He moved close to her again, tired of the conversation. He didn’t want to talk about Liam at all, for any reason or any length of time. Unconsciously she pressed against him, and he wrapped her arms around her. Neither even noticed that their bodies naturally sought each other out. He rocked gently and caressed her breasts and stomach, knowing exactly how and where to touch her to make her relax and lull her to sleep. As far as he was concerned, the conversation was over and he wasn’t interested in rehashing the same points over and over.
Kelly didn’t think Ida realized how much it stuck in his craw that she was married, that in the eyes of the law and society he had no claim over her. Every time she reminded him, it felt like a punch to the gut. He didn’t want to worry about Liam, didn’t want to think of him at all, but his faceless, formless ghost danced around them every day.
Ida fell asleep again, but Kelly could not. The more he thought about it, the guiltier he felt for picking a fight with her over Liam. He hated every second she thought of him, hated every single time she brought him up, but some of the things he had said to her were out of line.
With a sigh, Kelly pulled away from her gently. The sun would be up soon and they both had chores to do. He wanted to do something to apologize.
Kelly moved quietly through the house. He stoked up the fire and lit the oven. He pulled out her biggest pans and caldron and stepped outside to fill each with snow. He melted the snow over the fire and stove and repeated the process over and over until the bathtub was full with steaming water.
“Ida, pet,” he sing-songed, “Wake up, love.”
“Mmmm…cold…”
“Yeah, it is,” he agreed. He pushed the blanket off her body and pulled her to a sitting position. He pulled her shirt over her head and yanked off the oversized, soft pants she slept in.
Ida shivered and crossed her arms over her chest. “Kelly, it’s freezing.”
“I know…” He lifted her off the bed and held her against his body.
“Are you still mad at me?” she mumbled, linking her arms around his neck. She rested her head against his shoulder and her soft hair tickled him.
“Of course not,” he assured her as he carried her across the room. The warm tub was in front of the cackling fire and the shock of the unexpected heat against her skin as Kelly lowered her into the water pulled her out of sleep.
“What are you doing?” she gasped.
“Giving you a bath,” he answered.
“What? It must have taken forever to get this much water…”
“It did,” he confirmed. “Now relax.”
Kelly knelt beside the tub and cupped his hand, then gently covered her exposed shoulders and back with the hot water. He grabbed the soap and rag and began washing her smooth skin. “Do you like that?”
“Mmmm,” she moaned. “That feels heavenly.”
Kelly dipped his hands beneath the water and abandoned the cloth. He smoothed his soapy hands over her wet breasts and kneaded them leisurely. She relaxed under his ministrations and arched her back encouragingly. He paused long enough to soap his hands again, then covered her small body with his fingers. He stroked her stomach until she whimpered and kicked her legs. She splashed water all over him and he smiled evilly.
“You got me all wet.”
“I didn’t mean to,” she laughed.
“Well, now you’ve got to pay…”
She screamed when he attacked her thighs with his fingers. He alternately massaged and tickled them, moving closer and closer to her aching and damp center. She thrashed and tried to get away from him, but he held her so she couldn’t move. His fingers danced across her inner-thighs and his knuckles brushed against her wet curls.
“Do you want me to touch you?” Kelly asked.
“Yes…yes, now.”
“In a minute,” he promised, straightening. He ignored her frustrated groan and moved behind the tub. He pushed on her gently. “Lean forward.”
She did, and he scrubbed her back vigorously. Her skin turned bright red, but she didn’t protest at all. Instead, she leaned as far forward as she could, giving him as much access as possible. A chorus of small, pleased moans fell on his ears, and he smiled widely.
“There you go, pet. Lay back now.” He pulled on her shoulder and she relaxed against the back of the tub. Kelly grabbed a mug and poured several warm cupfuls over her head, down her curls, and into her eyes. Kelly lathered his hands and started massaging her scalp and then pulled the soap through her hair.
“Oh…Oh Kelly…That feels so nice.”
Ida closed her eyes and Kelly continued to massage her scalp gently. He worked his strong fingers through her hair, careful not to pull the snarls or hurt her in any way. He watched her practically melt in the cooling water and turn to maple syrup under his touch. His cock stood at attention, and he increased the pressure on her head slightly.
“I love your hands,” she sighed.
“Yeah?”
“They’re so…nice…oh God, do that again.”
Kelly covered her eyes with one hand, and used the other to rinse the soap out of her hair. The warm water drenched her head and face and Kelly did something he had fantasized about since the first time he saw her naked. He leaned forward and licked the water from her neck. Ida cooed with delight.
“What do you want me to do?” Kelly asked against her skin.
“I…I don’t know…”
“Yes you do, love. What do you want me to do to you?”
“Why?”
“I’ll do whatever you tell me to do,” he promised, his tongue tracing patterns on her shoulder.
“I want you to join me in the tub,” she said without hesitation.
Kelly eyed the tub over her shoulder. “There may not be room for me.”
“We’ll make room.”
Kelly stood up and stripped the clothes from his body. He stepped into the tub, his feet on either side of her legs, and carefully sunk to his knees. The tip of his cock brushed against her pussy, and Ida wrapped her arms around his body enthusiastically. The warm water consumed them as Kelly sank deep into her body.
Water splashed out of the tub and onto the floor, but neither noticed nor cared. The heat from the flames licked at Kelly’s back, but nothing compared to her heated flesh wrapped snugly around his cock. He reached between them and his fingers spread her lips open to find her throbbing clit.
“God…God…yes Kelly…faster…”
He didn’t rub her clit, just pressed his fingertip against it. Ida leaned forward and bit his nipple gently. Her tongue flicked over his hard nipple as he moved faster and harder.
She bit down on his nipple, almost hard enough to draw blood. The pain exploded in his chest and spread south to his groin, his balls tightening in response. His toes curled, his finger slammed onto her clit hard enough to send her spiraling into a second orgasm and he came violently.
“Oh…” He groaned, barely holding himself above her body.
“Will you be able to get up?” she asked weakly.
“No…”
She licked his nipple apologetically and he sighed, his eyes fluttering shut.
“Will you brush my hair?” she asked, looking up at him with sweet eyes.
“If I can walk…”
Kelly pushed himself up, and on shaking legs crawled out of the tub. He grabbed two towels and wrapped one around his waist and then held the other one open for her to walk into. He wrapped the towel around her and held her snugly in front of the fire.
Chapter Sixteen
The sun shone brightly and warmed the early winter afternoon, sparkling off the snow and nearly blinding Ida. She squinted her eyes and jumped off the porch into the snow, excited to be out of the house. It had been snowing and overcast for the past two weeks, and Ida was restless and itchy and ready to spend an afternoon outside.
“Leave the door open,” Ida said over her shoulder. “The cabin needs to be aired out. It’s starting to stink in there.”
Kelly stepped out of the house behind her and nodded.
“It’s a beautiful day!” he announced.
Ida smiled. It was, indeed, a beautiful day. Ida felt amazing out in the sun and snow, spinning around, her cheeks flushed, her lungs full of clean air. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kelly bend and scoop a handful of wet snow.
“Hey Ida!”
She spun around, “Wha-?”
Kelly nailed her in the chest with the snowball, laughter bursting from his mouth before the snow even hit her.
She looked down at her chest, then up at him, then at her chest again. “You are going to pay for that.”
“Oooh, I’m shaking.”
“You better be.”
He didn’t move, and the smile didn’t falter. “Do your best.”
Instead of retaliating immediately, she turned her back on him, hunched her shoulders, and buried her hands in her pockets. She tried to look as dejected as possible, and even faked a few soft sobs.
“Ida! You aren’t hurt are you?”
She didn’t answer.
“Ida, come on now, I was only playing.” He ran after her and grabbed her shoulder. “I’m sorry…”
She spun around quickly and kicked his legs out from under him. He fell hard on the snow, and before he could get up, she straddled him. “Thought you could throw a snowball at me?”
“What are you…”
She grabbed a handful of snow and smeared it into his face. “How do you like that?”
He spit the snow out of his mouth before answering, “You’re dead.”
“Only if you can catch me!”
She sprang to her feet and took off towards the barn, running as fast as she could in the deep, wet snow. Unfortunately, Kelly could move faster and caught her easily. He spun her around and grabbed her, then fell to the ground with her wrapped in his arms. For a moment, she thought he wouldn’t do anything to her, especially when he kissed her. While his lips distracted her, he shoved snow down the back of her shirt.
“Hey!” she yelped. “That’s cold!”
He laughed. “Snow usually is.” He put some more against the back of her neck, and let it drip down her coat. She struggled as hard as she could, but he kept her pinned between his body and the ground.
“Get…off…of…me…”
Instead of moving, he kissed her hard on the mouth.
“Ugh,” she turned her head. “Your lips are cold.”
“Somebody covered them with snow.”
Ida relaxed beneath him and found his lips again, warming them with her mouth and tongue. He relaxed at the apparent peace offering, just enough to allow Ida to push him off her. She kicked snow in his face as she scurried out of reach.
“Hey, that wasn’t very nice.” He stood up slowly.
“I’m not a very nice girl.”
“No, you’re not.”
He took a few steps toward her, but instead of running, she gathered snow. Unlike Kelly, she wasn’t considerate enough to aim for his chest. She hit him squarely in the face.
She expected retaliation. Instead, he held up his hands. “Peace…you win.”
Ida raised an eyebrow. “Really?”
“Really. I bow to your victory.”
And he did, indeed, bow low at the waist. She took a few tentative steps forward, and as soon as she was in reach, he grabbed her around the knees, and they both fell to the ground again.
“Hey, I thought you said I won.”
“You did. Here’s your prize.” He kissed her slowly and tried to work his hands into her coat.
“What are you doing?” she asked against his lips.
“What does it look like?”
“Your fingers are cold.”
“Mmmmm…and you’re so very warm.” He buried his face against her neck, warming his lips and nose on her skin. She squirmed beneath him, trying to escape his icy fingers.
“We have a nice warm bed,” she reminded him.
“We do,” he agreed, then licked her.
She unbuttoned his coat while he was busy licking and kissing her neck, and wrapped her arms around his body beneath the coat. She didn’t even feel the snow beneath her or the wind playing with her hair. She felt warm and safe beneath him, and she turned her head quickly to kiss him again.
“You taste like snow,” she muttered. “I thought we were going for a walk?”
He looked up. “We walked, didn’t we? Look how far away we are from the cabin.”
She turned her head. They were some feet from the front door, it was true. “Good enough for me. I didn’t really want to walk anyway.”
“Are you cold?” Kelly asked. Before she could answer, he rolled over onto the snow and pulled her onto his chest. “Is that better?”
“Mmmm.” She kissed him again, slowly, teasing him with her tongue. The sun warmed her back and dried the snow in her hair. It felt like she was melting against him and his unbelievably comfortable and warm body, hard and firm beneath her, his hands strong against her back, holding her against him. Not that she would move, anyway.
Ida lifted her head, and strands of hair fell forward, the tips brushing Kelly’s face. He reached up and pushed the hair back behind her ear. He didn’t say anything, just examined her flushed face in the winter light. After a few moments, she grew uncomfortable under his scrutiny.
“Do I have something hanging out of my nose?”
“No,” he said softly.
“Then what?”
“I just want to look at you…why are you blushing?”
“I’m not blushing…I’m just cold…”
“No, you’re not cold.” He laid the back of his hand against her cheek gently. “You’re blushing.”
“I don’t like to be stared at.”
“But I love staring at you,” Kelly countered, running his fingers down her cheek and neck. “You’re the most interesting thing to look at around here.”
“There are…mountains. Mountains are nice.”
“So are you.” He kissed the corner of her mouth.
Ida caught him by surprise by kissing him hard, her tongue plunging into his mouth, her hands holding the side of his face. Kelly moaned, and kissed her back just as passionately.
“God, I love you,” he breathed when they finally broke apart.
They were both surprised by his admission. Ida could see it in the way his eyes widened, and she was sure he could see the shock on her face. Frozen, they simply stared at each other. Kelly blinked and opened his mouth.
“I love you,” he said again, as if testing the words on his lips.
“I…Kelly…I…”
He kissed her, blocking her words. She kissed him back, afraid of what she wanted to say.
“Kelly,” she finally whispered, her forehead resting on his. “I…” Before she could finish her thought, Ranger, who had been sleeping quietly just inside the cabin, went crazy, barking viciously and running towards the road.
Ida automatically feared the worst and pulled herself out of Kelly’s embrace. She jumped to her feet. She scanned the road, or where the road should have been if it wasn’t covered in two feet of snow. At first, she couldn’t see anything. The glare from the sun and snow made it difficult to see at a distance. Finally, though, she saw the old, familiar wagon.
“It’s Tom,” she said.
“Tom?”
“He’s the owner of the dry goods store.”
“Oh, right. What does he want?”
Ida shrugged, “I don’t know. I didn’t order anything. Maybe Kate sent him out to check on me.”
“Why would she do that?”
“Isn’t it obvious? I’m a good customer, she doesn’t want me to freeze to death.”
Kelly nodded. “Makes perfect sense.”
“You should go into the house,” she said softly. “He’s the one who dropped off the sign.”
“Yeah, okay. You’ll be all right?”
“Yeah, I’ll see what he wants, then I’ll be
right in.”
Kelly kissed her on the cheek quickly before turning around and trudging back to the house.
Ida looked at the tracks in the snow and grimaced. It was clear there had been more than one person running around in the snow, and if Tom asked, there was no way he’d believe she had just been playing with Ranger. So hopefully he wouldn’t ask.
Chapter Seventeen
Within minutes, Tom pulled up in his creaking wagon. The horse wheezed, and Tom patted him and fed him some oats before he moved on to his business with Ida.
“It’s a nice day,” he said, as a greeting.
Ida nodded and folded her arms. “First nice day in weeks.”
He tipped his head towards the bags in the back of the wagon. “Kate had me bring out some supplies. She said that she’d be happy to sell it to you on credit.”
“That’s great…”
“So I’ll take them in. Oh yeah, and I have your mail and a few recent copies of the newspaper.”
“Oh, don’t worry about taking them in, I can handle it.”
Tom waved his hand. “Don’t be stubborn. These bags are heavy, and it’s no trouble to bring them in.”
“Really, Tom, I can handle it.”
Tom picked up a bag under each arm. “I’ve got it.”
Ida didn’t know how to stop him. She couldn’t think of a single good excuse to keep him out of the house, and short of tackling him to the ground, she didn’t have any options. She was right on Tom’s heels when he pushed open the door and stepped into the dim cabin. It took several seconds for her eyes to adjust.
Kelly was standing by the fire, naked from the waist up. His shirt was hanging near the fire, drying. He wasn’t wearing a bandage anymore, but the wound was still bright red against his pale skin.
“Ida, who is this?” Tom asked tightly.
“Oh, just a friend. He was injured and so he came to me because he knew I worked as a nurse, and I told him I’d take care of him over the winter if he helped with the chores, and you know, he’s a great help. I don’t know what I would have done without him, and look at how well he’s healing…”
“What’s his name?” Tom asked, interrupting them. Kelly, frozen and silent up to that point, finally spoke.
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